Last Modified: Wednesday, September 11, 2013 at 11:18 p.m.

Percle's son, Jonathan, said his father attended a Sunday night concert by his long-time friend and Grammy award-winning musician, Dr. John, at the Manship Theatre in Baton Rouge and suffered a heart attack a few hours later. Dr. John gave him the nickname “Jambalaya.”

“I can't imagine a better way to go,” Jonathan said.

Over the years, Percle cooked for The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bette Midler, Blondie, KISS, Chicago, Jimmy Buffet, the Beach Boys and many other musicians. Percle worked on the cooking staffs of many major events, including Final Four college basketball tournaments and Major League Baseball All-Star games, besides cooking for Pope John Paul II in Rome.

The 63-year-old was into “good food, good friends and good music,” his son said.

“Our culture has such a rich history as it relates to food and music,” Percle said in an interview a few years ago. “It's only natural that the two should be fused together. When you think about the happiest times in your life, the main elements are families eating good food and listening to music.”

He cooked at Oak Alley Plantation in St. James Parish and operated the former Bayou Bistreaux at the Bayou Country Club in Thibodaux. He also was executive chef at Nottoway Plantation in White Castle for about 20 years, returning to Thibodaux after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Percle, who served as president of the Lafourche Parish Tourist Commission, credits his grandmother as a major influence in his cooking and the preservation of local traditional recipes. She often prepared large quantities of jambalaya and chicken stew at the general store that she and her husband operated near their family farm. When Percle was 16 years old, he began catering for musicians in large arenas, including the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans.

Percle played music and hosted a popular KTIB morning radio show for five years in Thibodaux called “Soul in Yo Bowl.”

In 1996, he performed rhymes and rhythms on a musical cookbook CD titled “Soul in Yo Bowl,” which was produced by his longtime friend John Bergeron, who's known him since second grade.

“He was my best friend my whole life,” Bergeron said. “He was such a brilliant cook. It was an art form for him.”

Percle later released Johnny Jambalaya's Herb Marinade and Dressings.

Former NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal once dubbed Percle the “Elvis of the Bayou.” Percle had the chance to cook for O'Neal and the entire LSU basketball team several times during the early 1990s.

O'Neal, who was a big fan of Percle's Cajun-style cooking, approached him about opening a restaurant in Orlando not long after arriving in Florida.

“I guess it was around 1993 or 1994 that I moved down to Orlando,” Percle said. “I helped launch two Lagniappe Cafes in the Orlando area. The restaurants did well and I had the chance to hang out with Shaq from time to time.”

Percle was modest about any success he achieved in life.

“It's not about me,” Percle said. “I've gotten a lot of breaks to go my way. I've always been thankful for those people who have put me in the right place to spread our culture to the masses. I consider it an honor and privilege to spread music, food and love to everyone I come in contact with. I'm full of funk and soul, and I hope that comes through in my cooking.”

<p>Thibodaux native Johnny “Jambalaya” Percle, a well-known Cajun-style chef who cooked for many big-name musicians, died Tuesday night in Baton Rouge.</p><p>Percle's son, Jonathan, said his father attended a Sunday night concert by his long-time friend and Grammy award-winning musician, Dr. John, at the Manship Theatre in Baton Rouge and suffered a heart attack a few hours later. Dr. John gave him the nickname “Jambalaya.” </p><p>“I can't imagine a better way to go,” Jonathan said.</p><p>Over the years, Percle cooked for The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bette Midler, Blondie, KISS, Chicago, Jimmy Buffet, the Beach Boys and many other musicians. Percle worked on the cooking staffs of many major events, including Final Four college basketball tournaments and Major League Baseball All-Star games, besides cooking for Pope John Paul II in Rome.</p><p>The 63-year-old was into “good food, good friends and good music,” his son said.</p><p>“Our culture has such a rich history as it relates to food and music,” Percle said in an interview a few years ago. “It's only natural that the two should be fused together. When you think about the happiest times in your life, the main elements are families eating good food and listening to music.”</p><p>He cooked at Oak Alley Plantation in St. James Parish and operated the former Bayou Bistreaux at the Bayou Country Club in Thibodaux. He also was executive chef at Nottoway Plantation in White Castle for about 20 years, returning to Thibodaux after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.</p><p>Percle, who served as president of the Lafourche Parish Tourist Commission, credits his grandmother as a major influence in his cooking and the preservation of local traditional recipes. She often prepared large quantities of jambalaya and chicken stew at the general store that she and her husband operated near their family farm. When Percle was 16 years old, he began catering for musicians in large arenas, including the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans. </p><p>Percle played music and hosted a popular KTIB morning radio show for five years in Thibodaux called “Soul in Yo Bowl.” </p><p>In 1996, he performed rhymes and rhythms on a musical cookbook CD titled “Soul in Yo Bowl,” which was produced by his longtime friend John Bergeron, who's known him since second grade. </p><p>“He was my best friend my whole life,” Bergeron said. “He was such a brilliant cook. It was an art form for him.”</p><p>Percle later released Johnny Jambalaya's Herb Marinade and Dressings.</p><p>Former NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal once dubbed Percle the “Elvis of the Bayou.” Percle had the chance to cook for O'Neal and the entire LSU basketball team several times during the early 1990s.</p><p>O'Neal, who was a big fan of Percle's Cajun-style cooking, approached him about opening a restaurant in Orlando not long after arriving in Florida.</p><p>“I guess it was around 1993 or 1994 that I moved down to Orlando,” Percle said. “I helped launch two Lagniappe Cafes in the Orlando area. The restaurants did well and I had the chance to hang out with Shaq from time to time.”</p><p>Percle was modest about any success he achieved in life.</p><p>“It's not about me,” Percle said. “I've gotten a lot of breaks to go my way. I've always been thankful for those people who have put me in the right place to spread our culture to the masses. I consider it an honor and privilege to spread music, food and love to everyone I come in contact with. I'm full of funk and soul, and I hope that comes through in my cooking.”</p><p>He is survived by his wife Terry Thomassie Percle; son, Jonathan Richard Percle and wife Blair Bass Percle; daughter, Amanda Talbot Percle and fiancÚ Terrent Tristan Broussard; sister, Connie Richard and husband Judge David Richard; and grandchildren, Andrea Jolie Broussard and Jai Pierre Broussard.</p><p>Visitation will be Saturday from 9 a.m. until funeral time at Christ the Redeemer Catholic Church in Thibodaux. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at 10 a.m. at the church.</p>